Combined tape and thread package



Sept. 11, 19 4. w, R MCBEE 1,973,381

COMBINED TAPE AND THREAD PACKAGE Filed Nov. 21, 1931 Patented Sept. 11, 1934 Ui'lED STATES 1,973,381 COMBI NED TAPE AND THREAD PACKAGE William R. L. McBee, South Willington, Conn, assignor to The Gardiner Hall Jr. Company, South Willington, Conn., a corporation of Connecticut Application November 21, 1931, Serial No. 576,567

14 Claims. (01. 20647) This invention relates to packages for sewing materials, and more particularly to a combined package containing both a length of the material to be sewn and a sufficient quantity of the proper thread for performing the sewing operation.

Since time immemorial sewing materials such as tape, braid, ribbon, lace and the like, and the thread with which these materials are sewn, have been manufactured and sold with their complementary functions in mind, and yet, as far as applicant is aware, these two classes of goods have never been combined in a common package for display and sale purposes until the invention disclosed in applicants co-pending application, Serial No. 521,585, filed March 10, 1931, of which this is an improvement.

It had formerly been the custom, when buying sewing materials ofthis nature, for the purchaser to first select the tape of other material to be sewn, and to then attempt to match it as to color, quality, strength, and other characteristics, with a suitable thread. Very often this necessitated two independent transactions, either at two different places in the same store, or at two separate stores, and was universally a source of annoyance to both seller and purchaser due to the difficulty of matching these materials. Furthermore, the purchaser was usually forced to buy a spool of thread containing much more thread than was actually necessary to sew the specific length of. material, an obviously uneconomical situation. g

It is therefore one of the objects of the present invention to provide a novel combined package for containing both a length of material to be sewn and the proper length of a suitable thread for performing the sewing operation.

Another object is to provide an improved combined package containing both material to be sewn and the thread therefor which package display the goods in an attractive manner and renders unnecessary the objectionable practice of matching.

A further object is to provide a novel package of the type described wherein the board orcard of the materialto be sewn and thespool of thread therefor are secured together and maintained in a substantially unitary assemblage by the provision and use of novel securing means which may be easily and economically manufactured independently of the other elements of the package.

Still another object is to provide a combined tape and thread package wherein the board or holder of the material to be sewn and the spool of thread are removably secured to one another for display and sale purposes by one or more novelly constructed securing members. i

A still further object is to provide a package of the character described comprising a board or card of the material to be sewn, a spool of thread and novel securing means for maintaining said board and spool in a unitary relationship, which elements may be separately manufactured and assembled to form a unitary pack age, quickly, efficiently and economically. These and other objects will appear more fully from a consideration of the detailed description of the invention which follows. Although several embodiments of the invention have been de-' scribed and illustrated. in the accompanying drawing, it is to be expressly understood that this drawing is for the purpose of illustration only, and is not to be construed as a limitation of the scope of the invention. Reference should be had for this latter purpose to the appended claims. I

In the drawing, wherein like reference characters indicate like parts throughout the several views:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a combined tape and thread package illustrating one embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal ,sectional view of one end of a package constituting another embodiment of the invention; and

Figs. 3, 4 and 5 are similar perspective views, with certain parts removed, of the extremities of three other packages illustrating further embodiments of the present invention.

In the. form shown in Fig. l,a length of the material to be sewn, indicated at 6, which may be tape, braid, ribbon, lace, or other similar material, is wound in the usual manner upon a board or card 7 substantially rectangular in shape. As shown, material 6 is wound lengthwise of the board 7, but itwill be understood that if desired it may be wound in any other desired manner.

For'any given material 6 there is always a certain thread the color, strength and quality of which best fits it for use withthatparticular material. Accordingly, a length of thread 8 of the proper characteristics and in a quantity sufficient, but not excessively oversufficient, to sew the material 6, is wound upon a spool 9 of any desired material and form, the length of which is substantially equal to the width of card 7. It will be noted that the spool of thread thus formed is not necessarily cylindrical in shape, but is so formed that its thickness does not materially exceed that of board 7 together with material 6 wound thereon. Obviously, the same result might be obtained by thickening the board or card 7 and using an ordinary cylindrical spool.

In order that the spool of thread and the board or card of material may form a unitary package for shipping, display and sale purposes, suitable means are provided for detachably securing these elements together'in substantially unitary relationship. The means provided for this purpose must not only be adequate to prevent the spool and board-of material from becoming separated during shipment and subsequent handling, but must also be readily detachable so that the elements maybe easily separated for use by the purchaser. In the embodiment illustrated, the securing means comprise a pair of specially shaped wire securing members 10 each of which is provided with a pair of parallel arms 11 spaced apart and connected together at one of the extremities thereof. Wire members 10 may be made of any desired form of wire, either round or flat, and economically manufactured by stamping from a. blank and bending to the desired shape. While arms 11 may be made straight, if desired, they are each preferably provided Witha crimped portion 12, and made with a resiliency or springines's which opposes separation thereof.

I n assembling the: package and securing the spool 9 to board or card 7, one of the arms 11' 6 which is wound thereon, at a point adjacent 4b the top of said board. The arms of members 10 are thus inserted from opposite sides of spool 9 and board 7, and c'rimp'ed portions 12 are made sufiiciently long that the corrugations of the members thus inserted from opposite sides of the package int'e'rengag'e or interlock with one another so as to increase the resistance to their separation and withdrawal from the'as semblcd position. since securing members 10 are preferably made with a certain spring so that the two arms 11 resiliently "oppose any separation thereof, it will be evident that spool 9 is held to board 7 by the resilient action of the arms 11 of members 10,-and that accidental displacement of said spool sideways relative to the card is opposed by both the frictional engagement between crimped portions 12, the interior of spool 9, the surface of board 7 and the underside of material 6, and by the inter-locking engagement of said crimp'ed portions. 'This frictional and interlocking engagement, however, is not so great as to prevent the purchaser from readily sliding spool 9 laterally in either direction with respect-to board 7 when removing the spool of thread for use in the sewing operation.

The assembly of board or card 7 with the-ma terial 6 wound thereon, and its associated spool 9 of thread 8 may then be enclosed in a suitable wrapper late form a compact, unitary package. Wrapper 13 is preferably made *of some transparent material, such as cellophane, in order that the goods within may be well displayed to the eye of the prospective purchaser. If desired, a label 14 may be included in the package carrying the usual identifyingmark of the manufacturer, or manufacturers if the ma terial 6 and thread 8 are manufactured separately, and other usual printed matter descriptive of the material enclosed.

In the embodiment shown in Fig. 2, spool 9 is secured to board 7 by a single securing member 15 of somewhat different construction than the two members 10 employed in theembodiment of Fig. 1. As shown, member 15 is provided with one arm 16 which may be provided with a crimped portion 17, similar to arm 11 and crimped portion 12 previously described, which arm is engaged between the surface of board 7 and the material 6 wound thereon. The other ar-m 18 of member 15 may be straight and slightlyjdivergent from arm 16, and is provided at its outer end with a portion 19 bent to an acute angle therewith. Arm 18 and bent end portion 19 are adapted to be inserted within the bore or interior of ."spool 9 from one end thereof with the point of end portion 19 in frictional or digging e'ngagement withthe i-nside'surface of said spool. As shown, it will be evident that securing member 1-5 may be readily placed to secure spool 9 to board or card 7, but that separation of the spool from the board by sliding to the left, as viewed in Fig. 2, will be prevented by the engagement of bent end portion 19 with the interior of said spool, and to the right, will be opposed by the frictional engagement of crimped portion 17 with the surface of board 7 and the underside of material 6. In this embodiment, as in that disclosed in Fig. 1, the arms 16 and 18 of member '15 are preferably made with a spring which resiliently opposes separation thereof.

In Fig. 3, another form of securing member is disclosed, this member 20 having three arms 21, 22 and 23 each having a 'crimped portion 24. Arms 21, 22 and 23 are preferably formed out of a unitary piece of wire, bent to shape with all arms substantially parallel to one another, and formed with a suitable resiliency so as to oppose separation. Arms 21 and 2-2 are spaced apart a distance substantially equal to the thickness of board or card 7, and, when the package is assembled, pass between the surfaces of said board and the material -'6 wound thereon so as to resiliently grip the board therebetween. Arm 23-at the same time engages the interior of spool 9 in a manner similar to that previously described in connection with the embodiment of secured to board or card 7 by a single securing member 25 having a pair of arms 26 and 27 engaging the interior of said spool, and a third arm 28 being engagedbetween the surface of board 7 and material 6. In this embodiment,

arms 26 and 27, while substantially parallel, are 1- 14 provided with outwardly turned end portions 29-, and since arms 26 and 27 are so constructed that they normally resist displacement either toward or away from one another, said end portions have a'substantial frictional or digging-engagement with trimmer-surface 'of spool 8. Arm '28 is provided' with a c'riihped portion '30 in order to increase the frictional engagement between said arm and the surface of board 7 and material 6.

When assembling the package disclosed in this embodiment, arms 26 and mare initially compressed toward one another sotnat end 'p'ortl'o'ns 29 pass freely within spool 8 and then are al+ lowed to se arate to engage the interior or said spool-perm" '28 at the" same time passing between one surface of board 7 and the undersideof material 6.

In Fig. 5, there is disclosed an embodiment somewhat similar to Fig. 1, in that a pair of securing members 10' having arms 11' and crimped portions 12' are utilized, but differing there from in that the twoarms 11' i which engage board or card '1 do not rely upon material 6 for part of their frictional grip, but pass underneath a suitable retaining strip 31which may be made of paper, or other suitable material, andzpasted or otherwise secured along twoedges thereof, as at 32 to one side of board 7; Arms 11' are thus maintained in the spacebetween strip'31 and the surface of board or card 7.

It will thus be seen that by the present invention there has been provided a new and improved form of package for sewing materials which will greatly simplify, the merchandising and sale thereof, and eliminate the difliculty and annoyance incident to matching the material to be sewn with a suitable thread. Not only is the combined package herein provided a welcome innovation to the purchaser, but, by its unitary construction in a transparent wrapper, injury to the goods by handling and soiling is avoided, thereby resulting in a saving to the seller. The goods are attractively displayed, andthe package is so compact that a saving in display and storage space is obviously effected over the present situation where the material and threadare sold separately. Since the novel form of package protects the spool of thread, an additional saving may be eifeoted in that the spool upon which the thread is wound need not be made of wood or other substantial material as is now the practice, but may be of a comparatively weak material such as paper or cardboard.

It will be obvious that the invention is not limited to the form shown in the drawing, but is capable of a variety of mechanical embodiments. For example, the board or card upon which the material is wound may be of any desired shape other than the rectangular form shown, and other forms of spools may obviously be substituted for the spool illustrated and described. It will also be understood that the board and spool may be made of any suitable material including wood, cardboard and metal. Furthermore, any desired form of securing member which is the equivalent of any of those shown may be substituted therefor, and if desired, two of the members disclosed in Figs. 2, 3 and 4 may obviously be employed instead of one as shown. Various other changes which will now appear to those skilled in the art, may be made in the form, details of construction and arrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit of the invention, and reference is therefore to be had to the appended claims for a definition of the limits of the invention. What is claimed is: r l. A display and sales package for sewing materials comprising a board-like member having a length of the material to be sewn wound thereon, a spool of thread, and a securing member having a plurality of substantially parallel arms engaging said board-like member beneath the material wound thereon and the interior of said spool for maintaining said elements in substantially unitary relationship.

2. A display and sales package for sewing materials comprising a board-like member having a length of the material to be sewn wound thereon, a spool of thread, and a securing member having a plurality of arms engaging said boardlike member and said spool for maintaining said elements in substantially unitary relationship, one of said arms engaging the interior of said spool and another of said arms being engaged between the surface of said board-like member and the material wound thereon.

3. A display and sales package for sewing materials comprising a board-like member having a length of the material to be sewn wound thereon, a spool of thread, and a resilient securing member'engaging both the interior of said spool and said board-like member beneath the material wound thereon and uniting said elements into a substantially unitary package.

4. A display and sales package for sewing materials comprising a board-like member having a length of the material to be sewn wound thereon, a spool of thread, and a securing member having a plurality of substantially parallel crimped arms frictionally engaging both the interior of said spool and said board-like member beneath thermaterial wound thereon whereby said latter two elements are maintained in a substantially unitary assembly. 5. A display and sales package for sewing materials comprising a board-like member having a length of the material to be sewn wound there-- on, a spool of thread, and a pair of securing members each having a plurality of arms for uniting said spool and said board-like members into a substantially unitary assembly, one ofthe arms of each of said securing members engaging said spool from opposite ends thereof, and another arm of each of said securing members passing between the surface of said board-like member and the material wound thereon.

6. A display and sales package for sewing materials comprising a board-like member having a length of the material to be sewn wound thereon, a spool of thread, and means for securing said member and spool together in a substantially unitary package comprising a pair of wire members each having a pair of crimped arms, one arm of each of said wire members engaging the interior of said spool, said arms entering the spool from opposite ends thereof, and the other arm of each of said wire members passing between the surface of said boardlike member and the material wound thereon, the crimped portions of said arms being adapted to interengage to increase resistance to separation thereof.

7. A display and sales package for sewing materials having as elements a board-like member on which is wound a length of the material to be sewn and a spool of thread, and a securing member for uniting said elements into a substantially unitary assembly comprising a plurality of arms substantially parallel to one another, two of said arms resiliently gripping one of the elements united by said securing member, and another of said arms being in frictional engagement with the otherof said elements.

'8. A display and sales package for sewing materials comprising a board-like member on which is wound a length of the material to be sewn, a spool of thread, and a securing member for uniting said board-like member and said spool into a unitary assembly'comprising a plurality of arms, two of said arms frictionally engaging the surfaces of said board-like member and resiliently gripping said member therebetween, and another of said arms engaging the interior of said spool.

I 9. A displayand sales package for sewing ma' terials comprising a board-like member on which is wound a length of the material to besewn, a spool of thread, and a securing member for holding said spool to said board-like member comprising a plurality of arms substantially parallel to one another, one of said arms engaging the interior of said spool, and others of said arms being engaged between the opposite surfaces of said board-like member and the material wound thereon. a

10. A display and 'salespackage for sewing materials comprising a board-like member having a length of the material to be sewn wound thereon, a spool of thread, and a securing member maintaining said spool and board-like member in a substantially unitary assembly compris ing an arm having an end portion adapted to frictionally. engage the interior of said spool, and another arm being engaged between the surface of said board-like member and the material wound thereon. 1 I, 11. A display and sales package for sewing materials comprising a board-like member having a length of the" material to be sewn wound thereon, a spool or thread, and a securing member maintaining said spool and board-like member in a substantially unitary assembly compris ing an arm having an end portion bent to an angle therewith and in frictional engagement with the interior of said spool, and another arm engaged between the surface of said boardlike member and the material wound thereon,

said arms being resiliently resistant to separa-.* tion from one another.

12. A display and sales package for sewing materials comprising .a board-dike member having .a length of the material to be sewn wound thereon, a spool of thread, a securing member for holding said spool to said board-like member comprising a'plurality'of arms, one of said arms frictionally engagingthe' interior :of saidspool, and means for retaining another of said arms in engagementwith the surfaceof said boardlike 'm'emben 13. :A displayand "sales package for sewing"- materials comprising aboard like member having a length of the material to be sewn wound thereo'ma spooliof thread, and meansfor maintaining said spool and board-like member in a substantially unitaryv assembly'comprising a multi-arme'd securing member having one arm frictionally engaging the interior of said spool, and a retaining member'secured to said board-' like member beneath the material wound there- WlLLIAM R. -L.McBEE.

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